Thursday, November 8, 2007

Alright, so I went a little bonkers with the release of the new Chaos codex. At least I didn't go and spend a whole bunch of money on new models... maybe fifty bucks, if that. The first thing that everyone notices in the troops section are the Khorne Berserkers because they're rather brutal. I did the math on them, and when 10 of them charge, they can kill like 7 MEQ models, and that's without upgrading with a Skull Champion. That's pretty good, but what about the other troop choices? As it turns out, the Noise Marines are really, really good.HQ:

The Noise Marines are the mainstay of the army and they're very high quality troops. It's all thanks to that nasty little contraption called the Doom Siren. Talk about devastating. People thought that Wind of Chaos was good, but pount for pound, when you're facing off against regular troops (not monstrous creatures or crazy big stuff), this thing is much better and also requires no psychic test to use. It doesn't take the place of an extra attack (like a flamer would), and it has AP3...and here's the kicker: it ignores cover saves. Since the army strategy is to wipe large amounts of MEQ models off the table, I decided to take 3 close-assault units with Doom Sirens and Powerfists and back them with Rhino transports.

Noise Marine units equipped with Blastmasters are pretty decent too, and especially good at anti-MEQ at long range. It's debatable whether or not they're better than a Defiler (140 points for a 5-man unit with BM, as opposed to a Defiler's 150), but I think they'll shine out in a 2500 point army when your 3 heavy support choices are already filled up.

The units that bring the entire force together are the Sorcerer and the Daemon Prince, specifically for the Lash of Submission psychic power. In concert with the Doom Siren and the rest of the army's template weapons, it's the most deadly, versatile power ever...even more powerful than Fear of the Darkness and Fury of the Ancients. If there's a unit that can't be dealt with by the Prince, the Greater Daemon, long-range Obliterator firepower, or close-range Powerfist/DoomSiren units, then perhaps it can be pushed away by the lash. But what kinds of units fall into that category? Nothing comes to mind immediately with the exception of an army of Eldar grav tanks, but then again, nothing can really hurt them reliably to begin with except EMP grenades or maybe Swooping Hawks.

The only other nasty stuff in the army are the Defiler and Obliterators, and those units speak for themselves when it comes to how powerful they are...especially now that the Obliterators get Plasma Cannons!

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

What better way to begin than with the purveyors of purity and Imperial justice. The Ultramarines' primarch, Roboute Guilliman, created and implemented the Codex Astartes, detailing a complex and extremely structured method for the Adeptus Astartes to follow as they wage everlasting war against the enemies of the Emperor. I began creating the army around a few key core units, chosen specifically for their stature within the Ultramarines chapter.

Honestly this army is based on a very high level of story involvement. I wanted an Ultramarines army that said "Hey we're the Ultramarines," and "Look, we can prove it because Calgar and Tigurius are right there!" And of course, I had to use those wacky Tyranid Hunters because nothing says Ultramarines like a healthy feud with an alien race that just doesn't care about said feud.

Due to the expensive cost of these core elements, and the debatable value of a 500+ point Honor Guard, I had to raise the power level of the army's other units to compensate. I included the three separate units of speeders and two 5-man lascannon squads, all backed up by some long-range big guns. However, the most powerful element to the force is Tigurius leading an infiltrating command squad. If facing an army that isn't fearless, he's most likely to use his Fear of the Darkness special ability to chase multiple units from the battle on the first or second turn.

This will be the first in a series of articles detailing my various Warhammer 40,000 armies. It'll be a long list of articles that, written weekly, will take a year or more to complete. One thing I wish to focus on is the specific reasoning behind each army's construction. Why choose an army's specific makeup? What does the army have to offer? Is it strategically sound and tactically flexible, or is it simply a collection of models that share a story background?

They shall be my finest warriors, these men who give of themselves to me. They are my bulwark against the Terror. They are the Defenders of Humanity. They are my Space Marines and they shall know no fear.
+++ The Emperor of Mankind, on the Creation of the Space Marines +++